Lisa Simonsen(she/her)
Lisa first found herself on a yoga mat 12 years ago not realizing where it was going to take her or how it would forever change her life. She left class knowing that one day she wanted to teach. It took 6 long years but finally in June of 2013 she received her 200 hour RYT from The YogaScape studying with Amy Pearce-Hayden. During the 6 years leading up to teacher training Lisa went through a painful divorce and a personal battle with addiction. She credits yoga for saving her through those difficult times. Her yoga mat became a safe place to confront her emotions and learn to reconnect with her body.
During her teacher training Lisa was introduced to Y12SR (Yoga for the 12-Steps of Recovery) and she immediately knew she wanted to share the Y12SR teaching style with others who are struggling with addiction(s). In her own journey, she felt that going to meetings was not always enough and learned that she also needed a yoga practice. In 2015 Lisa trained with Nikki Myers and received her certification to lead Y12SR classes and meetings.
Lisa believes we all have a story and what matters most is how we relate to our story; we can let our story define us or we can embrace it and turn it into something beautiful. Yoga gives us the opportunity to chose by exploring our bodies and the sensations that arise. Lisa encourages students to find their own way to move, it is not about how the pose looks but more about how it feels. Her classes offer asana (the physical postures), pranayama (breathing techniques) and meditation (a mental practice). She invites students to hold an intention, find their edge and explore the philosophy of yoga, but most importantly to have fun. Yoga should not be so serious; smile, laugh and don’t forget to breathe.
